Ice Breaker: Pablo Dylan

Believe it or not, Bob Dylan's grandson is a rapper. We chatted with 16-year-old Pablo about his obsession with Jay-Z, changing the world, haters, and why he wants to be "the next Bob Dylan"

At first glance, Pablo Dylan is really just like any other 16-year-old kid. At 5:45 A.M. he woke up and worked out, getting in a bit of aerobic ercise and uphill cardio. Then around 8 A.M. he went to school. After the last bell rang, he walked a couple of blocks to a nondescript private recording studio in Santa Monica located in a large office building 10 minutes from Colorado Avenue. He’s been coming here for the past year, oftentimes working up to 103 hours a week. In the wee hours of the morning, around 3 A.M., his engineer and friend, Darren, drops him back off at home. The next day, Pablo repeats the activities all over again. His workaholic nature is impressive for an average kid. But unlike the average kid, Pablo comes from a family whose last name happens to be Dylan.

The young nephew of ex-Wallflowers lead singer Jakob Dylan, son of film and music video director Jesse Dylan, and beloved grandson of Bob Dylan, is a bonafide songwriter, producer and emcee who plans on being the greatest rapper who’s ever lived. Of course, if that fails, he’d at least be a contender for the hardest working. On his recently leaked single "Regular" he explicitly boasts: "Here I am / ya’ll better respect my conglomerate / I be on some other shit / I be on some ’been had millions I want billi-ons / I want muthafuckers not to recognize the car I’m in."

The song (produced by Chairmen and Swiff D) is a follow-up to Pablo’s July 4th mixtape 10 Minutes, and the kickoff for his upcoming untitled mixtape set for release in early 2012. Though news that Bob Dylan’s seed’s seed is a rapper has raised a few eyebrows, elicited some chuckles, and caused a mild media controversy (mainly ignited by ’60s-obsessed Bob fans awaiting the second coming of Robert Zimmerman), Pablo has focused on being his own person. "I understand why people compare the two of us," he says of his grandfather, "but if the situation was any different, I don’t think we’d even be mentioned in the same sentence."

This, of course, doesn’t take away from the fact that he and grandpa are extremely close. The two have made it a ritual to link up every Sunday for lunch whenever Bob’s in town, and they chat regularly on the phone. And while Pablo’s peers are out getting their drivers’s permit, he’s rubbing shoulders with industry players and collecting street cred. Guided by his Mississippi mentor David Banner, Pablo recently produced an unnamed track for the incarcerated platinum-selling rapper Gucci Mane ("He has a verse on it, but it’s unreleased as of now," Pablo says). And last night he found himself on the video set of one of his favorite rock bands, the Black Keys. "I mean, that was just one of those moments where I was just like, ’Wow,’" he says. "I think the Black Keys are really dope. I got to talk to [drummer] Patrick [Carney] a lot, but I didn’t really get to talk to the other guy. But I think Patrick is one of the coolest guys I’ve ever met. I sent him some of my music," he says. "And," he adds, "he’s following me on Twitter now—I just want to put that out there."

On a lazy Tuesday night, as the California breeze cools down, Pablo takes a minute away from the studio to talk to us about his obsession with Jay-Z, changing the world, haters, and why he ultimately wants to be "the next Bob Dylan."

Pablo Dylan feat. K Major and Darnell Robinson, "On Top of the World"

GQ:What made you decide to become a rapper?

Pablo Dylan: It’s something I’ve been trying to do my whole life. Music’s [always] been in my house. You can catch me to listening to everything from Mozart to Waka Flocka. I’ve been doing music since I was really really young, whether it was singing, playing the piano, drums, or whatever. I’ve done songs in every single genre you could think of. Like I’m working on a country song right now, a rock song—but rap is what I’m best at and enjoy the most. The first rapper I started listening to was Eminem. I think it was The Eminem Show, and ever since I started listening to that album it kept going.

GQ: So it’s not just a hobby for you?

Pablo Dylan: No. I spend 16 hours a day in the studio, every single day. I mean, it’s my life. I do beats, too. It’s all I do all day long. I make beats in class on my laptop. Teachers don’t really respond to that very well. But school is school. I’ve never been that big of a fan of school, I just kind of do it. I really do it because of my parents. My opinion of school is that it’s a really great thing if you don’t know what you want to do. I think it’s great for a lot of people. But it’s personally not for me. Rap, though, is definitely more than a hobby. My goal is to be the greatest ever. I want to be like the next Eminem.

GQ: I remember Em’s real early stuff. His lyrics were so...

Pablo Dylan: Provocative.

GQ: That’s one way to put it. It was really demented...

Pablo Dylan: I don’t know if you listen to a lot of my grandfather’s music, but my grandfather said a lot of stuff that went against what people wanted him to say, so my whole family—my dad, my mom—we really believe in just letting people express themselves. Not saying I do or don’t agree with anything, but whether I do or not, I can still listen to what someone has to say. At the end of the day, everyone has a different view on the world, and I think that’s one of the things that’s so great about music.

GQ: So your parents had no issue with you listening to that when you were young?

Pablo Dylan: No, my mom was the first person to play it for me [Laughs]—everyday on the way to school.

GQ: What have you been listening to lately?

Pablo Dylan: I’ve been listening to Drake a lot recently. Drake and Rick Ross. All Drake’s new songs like, "Club Paradise," "Headlines," "Free Spirit," all those. Rick Ross, I’ve been listening to "B.M.F." and a lot of [Lil] Wayne. I’ve been listening to Watch the Throne a lot, The Blueprint 3 ...a lot of Jay-Z.

Pablo Dylan: Oh no, I haven’t seen it! I haven’t even heard about it. Oh wow. I’m gonna have to watch that tonight.

GQ: If you ever met Jay, what would you say to him?

Pablo Dylan: I mean, I would probably be really honest with him and just probably be like, "You inspire me." I mean, I’m a huge Eminem fan but honestly my favorite rappers are Jay-Z and Kanye. So if I ever met any of the three of them, I probably would just be like, "Wow." And I’d definitely ask them questions about their process.

GQ: I read in an interview where you called Bob Dylan the Jay-Z of his era.

Pablo Dylan: I’m actually happy you asked me about that. I think my grandfather was an inspirational person in his generation and I think people today look up to Jay-Z today. Jay-Z gets the same status that my grandfather did. Jay-Z has definitely impacted culture in a very significant way. He’s lasted throughout the times. And there’s not a lot of rappers who can do that and stay relevant and be that number one guy. I really think he’s who my grandfather was.

GQ: Does your grandfather even like rap, or does he just like your rap?

Pablo Dylan: My grandfather listens to everything. I mean, if you walk through his house right now...I don’t necessarily know what he’s listening to right now, but I’ve definitely walked through his house and seen Dr. Dre CDs and Eminem CDs. I think he’s very open-minded, and he tries to understand different things.

GQ: What happened when you told him you wanted to be a rapper?

Pablo Dylan: He’s always supported me 100 percent. He respect what I do and I obviously respect what he does. I play him all my songs after I finish them. I think he likes them.

GQ: Do people ever make a big deal over the fact that you’re his grandson, do you ever tell people, or do you not even mention it?

Pablo Dylan: I don’t tell people because I really want to be my own person. I mean, I love my grandpa, I’ll love him till the day I die, but we’re completely different people so I don’t really tell anybody that at all. I really want to stand on my own. Like if someone ask me why I do music, I’ll explain to them what I do, but I definitely never say, "Bob Dylan’s my grandfather."

GQ: So when people hear your last name, do they just randomly be like, "Hey, your last name is Dylan like Bob Dylan!"

Pablo Dylan:[Laughs]

GQ: I mean, is that ever awkward for you?

Pablo Dylan: Yeah, it can be, but I just try to play it off and not talk about it. Honestly, I get it less now. But when I was a little kid, I use to get it a lot. Like, I remember when I switched schools in 7th grade. I didn’t know anything about anyone and everyone already knew that [I was Bob Dylan’s grandson]. I was just like, "Oh my God" [Laughs].

GQ: A while back, Rolling Stone did a news story on you. The headline was, "Bob Dylan’s Grandson Is a Rapper." Rolling Stone readers are somewhat older, and some of the old-timers who heard your stuff listened to you simply because you’re Dylan’s grandson. Based on the comments, many of them hate your music. How do you feel about that?

Pablo Dylan: It was completely weird. When I first put out my mixtape I wanted every single person to like it. Every single person. And when that came out, most of those people that were saying they didn’t like it, they wouldn’t even say anything about my music, they would just say, "Oh, he’s Bob Dylan’s grandson...he’s rapping... No." But like honestly, [the negative criticism] really, really started to get in my head, which is really weird because that never happened to me before. But my dad was just like, "No, you can’t read any of that. I’ve completely stopped reading all the stuff about me." So at this point, I really don’t read anything. I can’t. Cause if it’s bad, I’ll be like, "Wow, I’m bad" and if it’s good I’ll be like, "Oh, I’m good!"

GQ: How did your friends react when you first started rapping? Were they supportive?

Pablo Dylan: I think my close friends were always really supportive, I mean obviously there were definitely some people who were like, "Get out of here!" but I think that’s the same way it is with everyone. But I stay very selective about the people I hang out with.

GQ: You have a lyric on a song called "Top of the World" off your first mixtape where you say, "My people turned their back on me." What was that about?

Pablo Dylan: I had this incident where some people who were really supporting me stopped supporting me, and was really trying to pull me down. I think it really affected me. I mean, there were a lot of situations like that where even after I put out the mixtape people stopped being my friend once they saw the Rolling Stone article, or whatever article they saw. A lot of people stopped talking to me after that. A lot of people I considered to be my close friends turned out not to be. When it first happened, it really got to me and I started thinking about it a lot, but that’s why I keep a very close circle around me. There’s no more than 10 or 11 people I really really trust.

GQ: Do you have a girlfriend?

Pablo Dylan:[Laughs] Yeah, I have a girlfriend.

GQ: Why are you laughing?

Pablo Dylan: Cause she’ll be so happy that you asked that question. I’ve been dating the same girl since January 11.

GQ: You guys go to school together?

Pablo Dylan: No, actually it’s a funny story. She used to live in San Francisco and we met through friends. And then it was kind of like a long distance relationship, but she’s a freshman in college now.

GQ: Wait a minute... if she’s a freshman in college that means she’s like 18 or 19.

Pablo Dylan: Um...I’m not going to give out that information because I don’t want to get in trouble.

GQ: So she’s older than you...

Pablo Dylan: She’s definitely older than me. She’s just the greatest. And she’s also one of my best friends. She’s been with me through every step. I think it’s probably hard on her because of the amount of hours that I work. But I definitely think she sees the greater purpose.

GQ: Does your dad ever come to the studio?

Pablo Dylan: You know what, he doesn’t, he really just let me do my own thing. Like sometimes I’ll play him a song and he’ll tell me if he likes it or not. But he really lets me focus on it by myself.

GQ: Does he like your stuff?

Pablo Dylan: The thing is, he’s my dad so he likes everything I do [Laughs]. But I mean, there’s some songs he really loves. I played him a song a couple of days ago, though, and he was like, "I don’t like this," and then I played him another song I did right after that and he was like, "This is a completely different level for you."

GQ: How would you describe your style? When I heard your single "Regular" I began to think of Drake. Do people ever compare you to him?

Pablo Dylan: Yeah. I definitely think we have similar voices. Which to me is an incredible honor because Drake is one of my favorite artists of all time. I think he’s an incredibly talented songwriter and artist. I got into him when I heard [Lil Wayne’s], "I’m Goin’ In." I love that song. But the first song I was really obsessed with was, "Best I Ever Had." From the beat, to the verse, to the hook...it’s one of the coldest songs ever.

GQ: On your first mixtape you collaborated with Darnell Robinson, the grandson of the late industry legend Sylvia Robinson, on the song "Top of the World." How did you guys meet?

Pablo Dylan: Well, actually it came through a friend of mine, Closer Productions. He did the beat on that song, and it just so happened that he was friends with Darnell and he sent the beat to him. K. Major put a hook on it, and later that day I did my verse. We did the whole song in a day.

"I want to be the next Eminem.

I want to be the next

Bob Dylan."

GQ: Okay, so I have to ask you this: Hip-hop was built on being from the streets. Your family is wealthy. Do you feel like that might interfere with your image?

Pablo Dylan: I think if you really look at hip-hop today, I think that image is not really there anymore. I mean, look at the biggest rappers we have today, like Drake and Wiz Khalifa. There was this XXL [issue], I think it might’ve been last year, and all the rappers on the cover were smiling. Like, that was just like... "Wow." In all honesty, I’m just going to do what I do. It definitely crossed my mind at some point, but...actually, I take that back, I don’t think it ever did. I think I’ve really just been very honest with who I am. People can relate to anyone in any situation, if they’re good enough. I think Drake opened up that door, but I think the door was ready to be opened. At the end of the day, people are going to react to whoever puts out the dopest music. Like, if 20 years ago you told people Eminem was about to be the biggest rapper in the entire world, I don’t really know how people would react to that.

GQ: Earlier you said you wanted to be the greatest.

Pablo Dylan: I mean, that’s my dream. Just to clarify that, I want to be the best I can be, but that’s like comparing Jay-Z with Kanye...you can’t do it, they’re two different people. I just want to be on that level where I can get people to react to my music like that. I realize that a lot of people are going to listen to what I say. I realize that I have this opportunity that comes with a huge responsibility that not a lot of people are blessed with. So I really want to take advantage of it. I really want to change something. Like, a lot of the stuff I’ve been doing recently has definitely been very political. The other day, after the whole Troy Davis thing happened, I was so infuriated I went in the studio and wrote like three songs about that situation. But I think for the rest of my life I’m just gong to make the music that I feel, whether it’s political or not. I said it in a song I just wrote, which I’m hoping to put out soon. I said, "What happens when I’m gone, do I stay here forever? / they saying that I’m stupid / I’m just tryna be clever / cause I ponder the unexplainable / never say never / life was always good but I just want it to be better when I’m gone." That’s really how I feel. It’s really honest. People think I’m really stupid for asking some of the questions that I ask, and thinking about some of the things that I think about. I mean, I’ve heard a lot of people say that to me recently, like, "What can one person do? You’re a kid, you’re dumb. Why are you doing this?" But I’m personally just really trying to be smart. I’m hoping something I do last forever. I really want to do something that people will remember for the rest of time. Like, people aren’t going to forget about Jay-Z, people aren’t going to forget about my grandfather, people aren’t going to forget about Obama. I want to be the next Eminem. I want to be the next Bob Dylan. I want people to still be talking about me after I’m dead. That would really mean I was successful.

Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (effective 1/4/2014) and Privacy Policy (effective 1/4/2014). GQ may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with prior written permission of Condé Nast.